During transport, e.g., in an automobile, anything contained in the automobile tends to be disturbed or jostled. This disturbance to the stability (or jostling) of the automobile's contents becomes more apparent when the automobile travels over bumps or around turns. With the example of automobiles, this disturbance is greater with sport utility vehicles (“SUVs”), as compared to sedans, because SUVs have a higher center of gravity and correspondingly, have interiors that are higher off the ground.
Fortunately, most vehicles are equipped with seatbelts and specially-designed seats to limit the amount of jostling on the vehicle's human occupants. Unfortunately, however, little attention has been paid to making the ride more stable for the inanimate contents of a vehicle, such as luggage or bags.
Some bags are prone to stability when transported. Traditional luggage, like a suitcase for example, has a clearly-defined base, or surface, designed to stay in contact with the floor, including the relatively flat, or horizontal, surfaces of a vehicle. In addition, traditional luggage typically has clearly-defined sidewalls, thereby, together with a base, provide some degree of support structure. Consequently, these traditional pieces of luggage, particularly when packed so as to have a relatively low center of gravity and well-distributed contents, are rarely jostled, and thus, its contents are disturbed to a relatively minor extent during transport.
Other bags are prone to instability when transported. For example, contemporary plastic grocery bags are prone to instability. By comparison to traditional luggage, plastic grocery bags have no clearly-defined base and no clearly-defined sidewalls. Accordingly, plastic grocery bags provide very little support structure to its contents. Consequently, regardless of the manner in which they are packed, unless its contents are inherently stable, plastic grocery bags are disturbed to a large extent during transport.
Thus, keeping to our example of automobiles, plastic grocery bags, and their contents, will be jostled around during transport in the trunk of a sedan, and will be jostled around to a greater extent in the rear (or cargo area) of an SUV. A plastic grocery bag, and its contents, will simply be moved by the inertial forces imposed upon it during travel and will roam about the area in which it is confined. Thus, upon arrival at an intended destination, a person will be confronted with plastic grocery bags and their contents in disarray. Even if by chance, the contents manage to remain largely in the plastic bags, the person will still have difficulty trying to find the handles of each bag so that they can be lifted out of the vehicle. Typically, such problems are propounded with an increase in the number of plastic bags being transported.
In the automobile industry, several methods of addressing the problems inherent in transporting plastic grocery bags have been introduced. One such method has been to provide grocery bag hooks in a vehicle. These hooks are situated on an inside wall, or relatively vertical surface of the vehicle, and at a location above the relatively horizontal surface upon which a plastic bag is intended to “rest.” Typically, a hook is a permanently fixture in an automobile and designed to allow a user to place the handles of a plastic bag around it, thereby stabilizing the handles of the bags in hopes of stabilizing the bag and its contents.
There are several drawbacks, however, to grocery bag hooks. First, it often is difficult to place a bag on a hook, as well as removing it from a hook. This is due, in part, because the hooks are against a sidewall, which may serve as an obstacle, and because they are against a sidewall, one has to reach a certain distance into the vehicle to use the hook. Second, it often is difficult to grasp the handles of a bag from a hook because the handles often are “stretched” (or rather elongated) because the hook is not flexible. When the handles of a bag are stretched, or elongated, or twisted, the openings of the handles become difficult to discern, both with one's eyes and with one's hands. Third, a relatively limited number of bags can be placed on each hook. If the bags are roughly the same size, there only is a limited amount of “floor” space available for bags intended for a given hook because each bag's handles must be placed on the hook. Fourth, if there are a large number of bags, many hooks will be needed. In this regard, when more hooks are needed, the additional hooks become more difficult to reach. Fifth, it is possible for a bag to become separated from a hook, as there is nothing to maintain the handles of a bag in place on a hook. Consequently, loading bags on hooks and removing bags from hooks, as well as from the vehicle, is quite cumbersome and can be rather difficult.
Another method for addressing the problems inherent in transporting grocery bags is a net-type device, sometimes referred to as a “cargo net.” Typically, such nets extend between two points in an automobile. For example, in an SUV, a net may extend between the two sidewalls of the rear section, or cargo area, of the vehicle. Generally, the net itself may have two sidewalls, connected at the bottom, and an open top for receiving cargo, i.e., various items, including plastic grocery bags. Thus, such a net has a generally V-shaped or generally U-shaped cross-section. Also, the sidewalls of a net may be flexible to accommodate bags or items of various sizes.
There are several drawbacks, however, to cargo nets. First, as opposed to the hooks that typically are permanently-fixed features of an automobile, nets need to be set-up and taken-down. Otherwise, a net would use too much valuable cargo space when a net was not necessary, e.g., transporting pieces of furniture. Accordingly, using a net takes time, and typically needs to be stowed for extended periods of time. Second, the net is inherently cumbersome to use in that it is prone to tangling, i.e., unless it is always set-up in its ready-to-use mode. Third, a net has limited flexibility and accordingly, has a somewhat limited capacity. Fourth, with a net, the handles of a plastic grocery bag are not confined to a designated location during transport. Consequently, finding the handles of each plastic bag often is not easily accomplished. Thus, in light of these many disadvantages, a net designed to hold grocery bags, is underutilized.
Yet another method for addressing the problems inherent in transporting grocery bags is to provide containment areas. Typically, these containment areas are areas smaller than the trunk of a sedan or the cargo area of an SUV and devoted to holding a small number, sometimes even a single, grocery bag. Typically, a containment area is a prominently-visible compartment that is sometimes a compartment recessed into the floor surface or sidewall of a vehicle. In some vehicles, however, such as SUVs or station wagons, the floor surface of the rear section will lift up and reveal a containment area devoted to holding bags. Such a hidden containment area may have one or more compartments designed for this purpose. In this way, the compartments provide a certain amount of sidewall to support individual (or maybe a couple of) bags. Further, a containment area may be equipped with flexible cords or other devices or features to help provide additional support.
There are several drawbacks, however, to containment areas. First, containment areas provide limited stability to the bags or articles they are designed to stabilize. Even if additional support features are provided, use of these features makes containment areas more difficult to use, i.e., by requiring several steps to stabilize an item. Second, there is a limited amount of space provided to stabilize items in a containment area, and usually more limited in a hidden containment area. This drawback is common to most areas specially designed to stabilize items. Third, containment areas usually have very little flexibility, e.g., to accommodate items of varying and/or odd size and/or shape. Fourth, containment areas are often difficult to use. For example, as just described, items may not quite fit easily in a containment area. Also, hidden containment areas may be more difficult to use than visible containment areas. For example, lifting up a section of the floor surface of the cargo area of an SUV requires that section of floor surface to be free of items or requires one to relocate whatever may be on top of that surface before accessing the hidden compartment area. Thus, in light of their many disadvantages, containment areas are underutilized.
Another device that provides containment areas for addressing the problems inherent in transporting grocery bags is that of an organizer. As with a net, an organizer would need to be set-up and taken-down so that the entire cargo area can be put to other uses. An organizer usually is a structure that is separate from the vehicle, but can be placed in a vehicle to provide a number of smaller containment areas to hold individual (or maybe a couple of) items. As with a hidden compartment (or even a prominently-visible and/or recessed compartment), such areas provide a degree of sidewall support that otherwise would not exist.
There are several drawbacks, however, to organizers for automobiles. First, such organizers require a relatively large amount of space when in use and when not in use. Most users do not welcome the idea of devoting a large amount of space in their automobile to such devices. Second, assembly, or set-up, of such organizers is not easy and requires time. These first two drawbacks alone render an organizer an impracticable device for addressing the concerns raised herein. Third, when placing a bag in or taking a bag out of a compartment that is located too far into the interior of an automobile, it is difficult for one to reach such compartments. Fourth, as stated above, any defined compartment provides limited flexibility for accommodating odd-sized items. Thus, as with a net and a hidden compartment area, in light of its many disadvantages, organizers are left underutilized.
From the conventional methods just described and their drawbacks, it is evident that there is a certain cost-benefit analysis applicable to the problems inherent in transporting grocery bags or similar articles. There must be an expected and definite benefit from a method that requires a user to invest any extra time and energy in transporting grocery bags. If the benefit is limited, then the user usually will forego the use of the device. Even if the potential benefit is great, however, a user may forego using a device if such device requires too much effort and time to utilize. Typically, a user is in a parking lot with a shopping cart full of plastic grocery bags and wants to be able to load them from the cart into an automobile in a quick and easy fashion. Often, such user will forego any stability concerns, take their chances, and hope that it doesn't result in broken bottles and cracked eggs. Even if their hopes are met, however, a user will inevitably find a jumble of bags and groceries scattered in the location in which the bags were left.
It is, therefore, desirable to provide a system for stabilizing bags, particularly grocery bags, which is simple, easy to use and saves time. Additionally, it is desirable for such system to require very little space-both when in use and when not in use, yet accommodate a large number of bags, and be flexible to accommodate bags of various sizes. Such system must provide a significant benefit at very little cost-in time and effort-to the user.